forgotten memories
Thursday, September 07, 2006
heart and mind.
What determines our actions? More so than anything else, this decision lies in two very different spectrums. The heart, and the mind. These two entities are halves of the human psyche, each an opposing influence that determines our moves, our every step. Too often, we must make a difficult choice to choose between either.
Think of the heart as red. It is an epitome of feeling, emotion, passion, and even destruction. The heart does not think. It feels. It is the soul of a human, the conscience, the call to act rather than wait. There is no decision to be deliberated- only immediate risk and action to be taken. The heart is impulsive by nature, but it is far from simple as many like to think. The heart encourages one to follow emotion, to do what you feel. To the heart, its greatest goal is to see yourself live with no regrets, because to the heart, as long as you always act in the interest of your feelings, you will never be sorry for yourself.
There is a great tendency to picture the heart as selfish. In fact, the heart is anything but selfish. The heart cares about others, about the social circle. It is sensitive because it cares about emotion. It feels, both for itself and for others. This works both ways for the heart: it will care for its friends and social circle, but it will destroy its foes with its terrible rage. The heart's feelings can go to extremes- love to the point of obsession, hatred to the point of destruction. This is because the heart has litle or no control over the very forces it is defined by. But this doesn't mean the heart is wrong- the heart also represents all your ideals, your dreams, your true feelings and goals. And these are fine things to follow and chase. To sacrifice your heart would be equivalant to sacrificing all these. To sacrifice the heart is to sacrifice joy, love, and hope.
Think of the mind as blue. Blue stands for everything that red is not, just as the mind is the ultimate opposite to the heart. To the mind, there is no room for emotion, feeling, or sensitivity. These are foolish ideals for the weak-minded, because they cannot see the bigger picture. That is what the mind is constantly after: the greater good, the bigger picture. The mind preaches thought over action, which is what the heart opposes. Why? The mind is all about thought and decisions simply because by thinking, you weigh the pros and cons of all your actions. To the mind, by thinking, you have ensured your total security and have fullproofed your plans and actions. You cannot fail if everything has been thought out carefully. Practicality is the mind's game.
The common misconception of the mind is that it is cold, unfeeling, even evil and self-centred. Sometimes this may be true, depending on the person in question, but oftentimes the mind is just looking out for a nobler cause, the greater good. A proper mind seeks out the best for everyone by sacrificing the short-term gain. What may be a cold visage is actually a well-thought out plan that is focused on helping all. But of course, the mind is cunning by nature, and sometimes its potential is used instead for individualism and its own ends. Like the heart, the mind can also reach extremes- it can become cold to the point of isolation, and cunning to the point of evil. This doesn't mean, however, that the mind is wrong- the mind represents everything about knowledge, opportunity, about making the best choice possible with all the available information. To sacrifice it would be to lose your options, to lose your sanity, even.
At this time, think and see: which have you based your decisions around? Sometimes, there may not even be a choice to make- but a compromise. Feeling defined by thought. Thought defined by feeling. It is old advice, but have we really taken it to our heart and mind?
Nick spoke his mind at ; 10:01 PM
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